(CNN) – Sixty years after the landmark Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education challenged segregation in Topeka, Kansas, and changed the makeup of American classrooms forever, first lady Michelle Obama looked out at a crowd of Topeka’s soon-to-be high school graduates and saw its “living, breathing legacy.”

In 1954, Oliver Brown, an African-American welder and assistant pastor, brought the case against the Topeka Board of Education for not allowing his 9-year-old daughter, Linda, to attend Sumner Elementary School, an all-white school near the family’s home. Friday night in Topeka, the nation’s first African-American first lady looked out at the diverse faces of soon-to-be graduates and said they reminded her of her own daughters.

“Graduates, it is clear that some of the most important parts of your education have come not just from your classes but from your classmates,” said Obama. “Ultimately, that was the hope and dream of Brown,” Obama said, speaking at a “Senior Appreciation Day” event attended by students, families and faculty of area schools.FULL POST

WASHINGTON (CNN) – The chances that any significant immigration legislation will be enacted before the midterm election grew more remote on Friday, when House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's office said it would not allow debate on a narrowly crafted proposal sponsored by a fellow Republican.

President Barack Obama and Senate Democrats made a major push this week on the issue, hoping to put pressure on House Speaker John Boehner to allow a vote before the August summer break.

But Boehner and other House GOP leaders have repeatedly rejected calls to vote on a Senate-passed comprehensive immigration bill. They insist the only way the House will act is using a step by step approach.FULL POST

(CNN) - If Chris Christie lost favor with some in the Jewish community with what he called a misstatement about Israel earlier this year, then the New Jersey governor may have a chance to make up for it.

The Republican, who's thinking about running for president in 2016, will deliver the keynote address Sunday at an awards gala hosted by Rabbi Shmuley Boteach's "This World: Values Network" in New York.FULL POST

CNN’s POLITICAL GUT CHECK | for May 16, 2014 | 5 p.m.
— n. a pause to assess the state, progress or condition of the political news cycle

VA OFFICIAL RESIGNS IN WAKE OF SCANDAL OVER WAIT TIMES, CARE … A top official at the Department of Veterans Affairs has resigned amid the growing scandal about wait times and care at veterans’ hospitals, the department’s leader said Friday. News about the resignation of Dr. Robert Petzel, undersecretary for health in the Department of Veterans Affairs, came one day after he spoke at a Senate hearing about the issue alongside Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki. Petzel was scheduled to retire sometime this year, the department said in 2013.

HOUSE VETERANS' AFFAIRS CHAIRMAN JEFF MILLER: “Today’s announcement from VA regarding Undersecretary for Health Robert Petzel’s ‘resignation’ is the pinnacle of disingenuous political doublespeak.”

A day after the Kentucky Republican announced his intention to stall the nomination of David Barron to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, the ACLU backed his threat to stage a talking filibuster until President Barack Obama's administration turns over legal opinions on much-debated drone program to senators.FULL POST

Washington (CNN) – President Barack Obama is taking on an issue causing alarm at schools and kitchen tables across the country: the increasing rate of concussions in young athletes.

The White House said on Friday that Obama would host a “safe sports” summit convening coaches and experts in the coming weeks, where he’ll announce vows from public and private partners to raise awareness of brain and head injuries in kids’ sports.

(CNN) - Rep. Peter King said Friday he warned Hillary Clinton that she should prepare for a potential presidential showdown.

The longtime congressman from New York is still considering a White House bid and has traveled to New Hampshire, which holds the first-in-the-nation primary, to try and make inroads with voters.FULL POST